tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post785213815218572304..comments2024-03-18T03:28:36.581-04:00Comments on Shrink Rap: What happened to Parity? Dewar Insurance discriminates against people with mental health disorders.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-35724549307753496092015-08-25T17:32:19.142-04:002015-08-25T17:32:19.142-04:00I think all of these comments and Dinah's orig...I think all of these comments and Dinah's original post all make sense. However, I am unclear whether there is any legislation in the ACA or elsewhere at the federal level that would cover THIS kind of insurance. The ACA deals with health insurance, which regulates non-grandfathered health insurance plans. Are other kinds of insurance regulated per mental health parity? If someone gets into multiple car accidents due to mental health reasons their insurance rates still change or their coverage is canceled the same as if they are just terrible or unlucky drivers. <br />Does anyone know the answer to my uncertainty re: parity and health insurance vs. other kinds of insurance?Sideways Shrinkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04104276227611510870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-77201285869253150272015-08-24T17:43:22.809-04:002015-08-24T17:43:22.809-04:00P-K -- you would have lost the same money if you w...P-K -- you would have lost the same money if you were "physically ill" instead of "mentally ill" because you didn't have insurance. If you were so ill you couldn't leave your house, and were in and out of the hospital, obviously there would be documentation to support that and IF YOU HAD insurance, it would have covered it. You didn't lose money because you were mentally ill, you lost money on the courses because you didn't have insurance. Had you had that insurance, the documentation provided for severe mental illness would have sufficed for you to make a claim. That's not discriminatory at all. It sucks that you lost money but that happens to thousands of people every year for both physical and mental health reasons. Tnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-4994104283940507712015-08-22T10:56:04.447-04:002015-08-22T10:56:04.447-04:00I think it's discriminatory. There shouldn...I think it's discriminatory. There shouldn't be a separate standard for physical and mental illness. I was making straight A's in graduate school until I got sick. I stopped going, and because I didn't withdraw my A's eventually turned to F's. I was in and out of the hospital. There may be people who fake mental illness for some kind of gain, but there truly are people who become so ill they can't function and who stop leaving their house. When I got better my psychiatrist wrote a letter and thankfully I was able to salvage my graduate degree. I didn't have any kind of insurance, so I lost money on the classes I had to repeat.<br /><br />P-K<br /><br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-72086804026610248072015-08-21T17:39:34.927-04:002015-08-21T17:39:34.927-04:00"are they saying that mental illnesses are le..."are they saying that mental illnesses are less real or valid so you have to 'prove' you're really sick" -- yes, and with reason. people don't fake cancer. nobody should get tens of thousands of dollars back because they felt a little sad. Tuition reimbursement should absolutely necessitate proof beyond a one time meeting with a therapist who says joey feels sad and needs to take time off and have all his (parents') money refunded. <br /><br />That's not reality. Tnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-86088503527236157982015-08-21T09:41:36.212-04:002015-08-21T09:41:36.212-04:00Maybe all it means is that the asymmetric informat...Maybe all it means is that the asymmetric information problem is larger for mental health.mobilenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-30774890637450216472015-08-19T20:31:00.483-04:002015-08-19T20:31:00.483-04:00Yeah, I don't know.
Disclaimer - I took time ...Yeah, I don't know.<br /><br />Disclaimer - I took time off from college after severe depressive episode and hospitalization. I went to a private school with loans I'll be paying back for the rest of my life and didn't have insurance like that. You're not taking into account that you're speaking from the perspective of a highly comfortable married parent of a child in college. That doesn't take into account most people.<br /><br />I don't actually find the policy discriminatory and I'm an individual who had to take time off from school without any insurance payback. Mental illness such as depression doesn't really have clear clinical guidelines for something like disability. It's incredibly subjective. Frankly, depression isn't the same thing. Until there are clearer guidelines for what is and is not incapacitating and does require intensive medical and psychotherapeutic treatment and time away from work/school, I don't see a problem with lesser reimbursement for an illness that is not really defined. Are all these people you're so upset about identifying themselves to their ADA offices and disability offices on campus, utilizing the same services anyone with a "physical" illness would? Nope, but suddenly at the end of term when it's been all parties and floating up until grades are due, people need to withdraw for a mysterious, vague "depression" -- that didn't require much if any treatment until that point..... yep. You find it stigmatizing but it's stigmatizing for a reason. Too many people take advantage. There should be a clear indication that there was a need for withdrawal/time off --- perhaps consistent decline in work, attendance at classes, evidence of some form of outpatient treatment that didn't work (of course confidentiality protected), etc. A psychiatrist or therapist simply saying after one meeting "s/he needs time off" isn't acceptable and shouldn't qualify for special insurance. Medical proof is required for people with physical illnesses. Why should "mental illnesses" be any different? You're asking for special treatment for privileged upper class students. But you often do that on this site, because it's your blog.Lisanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-25788411140261647902015-08-18T21:27:57.276-04:002015-08-18T21:27:57.276-04:00The three of you have all these contacts among pro...The three of you have all these contacts among providers in various facets of our profession, I would be very interested if you would ask what your peers think about this demand of us to provide 90 day supplies of medication to psychiatric patients, especially early on in treatment.<br /><br />Why do I ask this here? Because this is one time they, as in insurers, claim parity for mental health with somatic care, and still the agenda is to be disruptive to mental health outcomes at the end of the day.<br /><br />The bias and discrimination is pervasive, and the silence by most providers is deafening as complicit!<br /><br />Just my imperfect opinion...Joel Hassman, MDhttp://cantmedicatelife.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-85704441558446094592015-08-18T11:27:42.751-04:002015-08-18T11:27:42.751-04:00Recent move to California from New England. Now h...Recent move to California from New England. Now have Anthem BC - and our policy limits reimbursement for outpatient MH visits to 30 visits/year (roughly every other week, with 4 'extra' visits). Presumably that covers psychotherapy every other week and med visit every 3 months. As is often the case, most private practitioners are 'out of network.' Our reimbursement was 16% of the cost of each session. But the real kicker to the idea of parity (and to the pocketbook) is that none of the money that is spent on outpatient mental health care can be applied to the maximum out of pocket costs! <br />Our insurance comes via my husband's job, we chose the expensive plan to preserve freedom of choice (we have a couple of key meds that do not have generic equivalents). California allows premiums to be adjusted based on the age of the insured persons and we are both in the last age band before Medicare. <br />Until now I never worried about having to go without necessary medical or mental health care when we needed it...now I do. <br />clairesmumnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26666124.post-60260533846057171012015-08-18T10:03:18.964-04:002015-08-18T10:03:18.964-04:00Just don't buy the insurance. It's optiona...Just don't buy the insurance. It's optional. Long term disability insurance discrimination is a much larger issue than tuition reimbursement insurance. 2 year limit for mental illnesses, usually. If you can't recover from mental illness sufficient to work full time, you are destined for a life of poverty unless your spouse has a good job.ILuvCatsnoreply@blogger.com